Maine Wabanaki-State Truth and Reconciliation Commission

The MWTRC's mandate was to find Truth, Healing, and Change by giving the Wabanaki people and others involved within the Maine Child Welfare System a place to voice their stories and experiences.

[2][3][4][5] The "Algonquian-speaking Wabanaki People" have occupied many of the Maritime areas in Canada (Quebec, Newfoundland, Prince Edward Island, Nova-Scotia and New Brunswick) and the United States (Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and Massachusetts) for thousands of years.

It has been institutionalized in United States Law by Supreme Court Cases and was responsible for giving Christian Colonizers the power to enslave Indigenous People and take control of their lands.

[1][7] In 1978, the United States Federal Government put in place the Indian Child Welfare Act in response to the crisis affecting Native children and families.

[3][6] The WBTRC found that there continues to be significant public and institutional racism towards the Wabanaki people as well as issues over contested sovereignty and jurisdiction which have made administrating child welfare more challenging.